A Slip

Posted on February 10, 2016 by Gigi in My Life 4 Comments

Yesterday was a full day. Like most days my morning started early. By noon I was desperately trying to score Beyonce tickets with no avail, which is okay- I was only trying to do it for my daughter.

I drove into the city to meet a friend at the Pan African film festival, which was fabulous. I know in another life I was a filmmaker. We saw about 15 shorts, and like Siskel and Ebert we were giving them our own thumbs up thumbs down review.

We finished the evening at Post & Beam, Govind Armstrong’s restaurant, with good conversation, wine, dinner and lots of laughs about the past.

with chef Govind Armstrong

Timing was perfect to pick up Reggie from the office, which I did. So here is where things changed, he drove up to our home, parked in the driveway and I got out of the car like I have done for the past 27 years. I went to the mailbox, and next thing I know like a cartoon I fell, not almost fall where you catch yourself, but the kind of fall where your purse goes one way and your body is slammed against the concrete. All I could think about was that I was jacked!

the fall

With my osteoporosis, what if I broke my hip…Still for a moment as Reggie came to help me, I slowly got up and limped to the house barefoot. My hips were fine, I guess all the padding protected them. I immediately started the process and elevated and iced both ankles, which was where the most trauma was evident.

As I reflect on my fall, this morning I think about how that could have been a real disaster, reminding me of how life is fragile and fleeting and will slip right from under you literally. I need to SLOW down and be aware of my environment and stop trying to do it all every moment- and ween myself from those DAMN heels!!!

Happy Wednesday from a bruised but otherwise okay Gigi

the shoe…

In pursuit of Perfect

Posted on February 5, 2016 by Gigi in My Life 4 Comments

Gigi

I used to want it “all”. You know the perfect house, husband, kids, career, invites to all the best parties, and of course a thin body with all the latest designer frocks. While nothing is really wrong with wanting those things it contributes to a sort of deterioration , when the milestones aren’t reached or the perfect story starts to fall apart. Out of nowhere some unforeseen unpredicted situation will arise and everything will come tumbling down.

2015 was a year of highlights, I successfully made it through the rigorous college application process, the acceptances arrived, a beautiful graduation party, fall family trip to New York for the dorm move in, side trip to one of the best outlet malls- life was good. Thanksgiving came and everything changed-

My son did not return to school due to a host of complications and mishaps. My little perfect story had a glitch, that I did not see coming. At first I felt it was my mistake somehow, my cross to bear, like I was responsible for this puzzle piece that was lost. How would I explain that my prep school, year abroad in Italy, artist, son was not returning to college- he was taking an unplanned gap year?

Well the holidays have come and gone, we are all adjusting and regrouping. It is a time of discovery, learning that my son is quite a chef and perhaps a culinary career my be an option he is researching.

I am constantly reminded that life is not predictable and that you have to just go with it and make the most of any situation…and always look for the silver lining.

Reggie Creation-

Reggie

Happy Friday. I am looking forward to a solo weekend of indulgent me time. My husband is traveling to Florida for a conference and my son is going to Santa Barbara.

Xoxo,

Gigi

Not feeling myself…

Posted on January 29, 2016 by Gigi in My Life 2 Comments

pooh…

Yesterday was one of those days that was just off. The morning started with a shower of telemarketers selling services I have no desire for. Everything I needed to do was taking longer than expected, so hence I left late for my LA appointments.

running around sans makeup

Being gone almost 15 days this month has finally caught up with me. I just put up the last of my holiday decor tonight! Crazy, I know- but I could not go into February with 20 nutcrackers on display.

I can’t believe it is the last Friday of the month, time waits for no one…

I’m looking forward to being home this weekend. Working on the never ending house edit – an edit that is starting to give me so much freedom letting go of random things that at one point seemed so critical to my existence. Like today I got rid of a bunch of suits, from my “office working days” suits that were nice of enough to donate to an agency and some perhaps another woman may be blessed as a result.

So my friends I’ve come to the conclusion being overwhelmed is a way of life for me…overscheduling is what I do- I’m in a race to embrace every second of my life and I don’t want to miss anything.

So are you too overwhelmed? Do you have any secret struggles you are dealing with? I do. Please know you are not alone and we will get through this journey.

Sending love and good vibes and vital hugs to anyone who may need one today.

Happy Gigi

xoxo,

Gigi

Fear of Failure

Posted on January 21, 2016 by Gigi in My Life 3 Comments

I have a little secret that after this post it won’t be a secret any more.

I have a fear of being a failure. A loser.

I think it stems from being overwhelmed and at more times than not unorganized. I have this feeling that I’m racing against this big stopwatch that is my “life” and soon the timer is going to go off and I’m not going to be finished.

I have had my share of loser/failure moments.

In elementary school I was the slowest person in PE. I remember always being last in all of the fitness tests.
In high school I tried out for the cheerleader squad and I didn’t make it- cut in the first round .
My senior year of high school I was in a relationship with a guy that could have been part of ISIS- I was terrorized for 3 years and nobody knew.
See #3 I dropped out of college.
Worked weird odd jobs- like delivering delinquent reports of people who were behind on their property taxes to a company that was headquartered on a nudist colony up in the mountains.
Finally got a “good” job at IBM and one day I just quit- no notice-
Started a chocolate brownie business with a friend, everything was going good and then due to a host of complications we closed the business.
Started interior design school, took a bajillion classes, but never finished the program.
Started a home decor business and after a couple of years it fizzled.

Gigi

Fast forward to my photography business. I’ve spent thousands and thousands of dollars on all kinds of equipment, classes, marketing etc.. So yes I’m scared- sometimes I wake up in the middle of the night and I question myself. “what the hell are you doing?” The good thing is I think about this quote-at those times.

quote

I have to believe that it is true. And yes in between all the shortcomings, there have been lots of highs as well- like I did go back to school and I finished my degree.

Gigi finishing college

I successfully mothered two children and have been a wife for almost 27 years.

Bar Acuda

I’m the person I am today that is a combination of all those experiences. I am resilient and if I do give up, I quickly reinvent myself and keep it moving!

What are you afraid of? What wakes you in the middle of the night? How do you deal with your fears?

Xoxo Gigi

Home Sweet Home

Posted on January 14, 2016 by Gigi in My Life 2 Comments

After the anxiety of getting to the airport, getting detained by TSA for water bottles, running to the gate, I am finally home. I’m a little wiser and excited about the infinite possibilities for my business. The conference inspired and delivered, which is good.

Sometimes, I think to myself, “What am I doing?” Why not just chill and lead the leisure life? Why do I dare to dream, dare to believe I can make a difference? It is challenging to establish a presence in a business where most of the people are half my age, but regardless I refuse to limit my ambition. Life is about growing, exploring and being the best you. The challenge keeps life interesting and accountable.

As I’ve gotten older, I’ve become consumed with the thought of how am I going to make a difference and what legacy am I going to leave behind. There is no time to waste on wishing for things to be different physically or materiality. I’m on this journey moving forward one step at a time or in my business one click at a time-

What are you dreaming about? Or think about this question, “If you could have one day back…any one day of your life to relive…a do over…” what would it be?

Happy Thursday !

Xoxo,

Gigi

Reggie’s Birthday

Posted on January 8, 2016 by Gigi in Aging, My Life 4 Comments

Reggie

Reggie’s birthday was yesterday, his 64th no less. Funny that our numbers are going up but we don’t “feel” whatever that age is supposed to feel like. We will be celebrating this month, starting with dinner tonight. In a couple of weeks we will go to Las Vegas with friends and I have a few other surprises planned. I asked Reggie did he feel “64” and they are battling diseases that have taken a toll on their bodies, although I have high blood pressure, I know if I were not exercising and eating a plant based diet I probably would not be celebrating my 64th birthday.”

I love birthdays and over the years we have had a lot of parties- here are a few pics I found from some of those shindigs.

Reggie celebrated 63 years on planet – we had a little house party.

one of the 50 something birthdays I can’t recall which one- the only clue is I was wearing my hair straight – so this may have been about 10 or 12 years ago.

Husband & I birthday 61 I can tell by my “big hair don’t care” oops the the grey mustache…hehehe

60th St. Lucia- we went with 4 of our dear friends and had a blast-

birthday – maybe 57? that purple dress is kinda old…

another one of the 50 something birthdays

One of the 40 something birthdays…I can tell by my hair and the thick dark mustache

Reggie 58th b-day

surprise party I think 59th- close friends met us at a restaurant-

Next year will be one of those milestone birthdays, perhaps we will go away somewhere or maybe another party- all I know is we will celebrate-

Are you obsessed with celebrating birthdays like me? Growing up I had a birthday party for my 6th birthday, a slumber party for my 12th and that was it…so I think I am making up for all the years I did not have birthday celebrations.

How do you typically celebrate birthdays?

Xoxo,

Gigi

Do you still “Do it”?

Posted on September 8, 2015 by Gigi in My Life 10 Comments

reggie & Gigi

So I’m minding my own business and doing my routine maintenance – mani, pedi etc., when I finally arrived at my last stop on this particular day, the wax salon. While not the most pleasant experience it is one of those little necessities, at least for me that make my life a little smoother. I missed the laser option a while ago (that’s another post that I will have to share) so hence I am vested in this little wax salon.

I’ve been going to the same waxer, “A” for over 10 years, it’s sort of like your ob/gyn, once you find one you are comfortable with you stay. You develop a unique relationship with a person that does such a specialized service, needless to say we have gotten really close. In our 15 minutes together we talk about everything, from what the kids are doing, photography, my kitties, yoga, etc., so on this particular visit the conversation goes something like this:

A: “Do you and Reggie still “do it”?

Moi: “Yes…we do” not as often as we used to-not like, before marriage or before kids, but yes we do…

A: “You know a lot of my clients don’t have sex, I hear it all the time.”

riiiiip riiiiiip

Moi: “hmmmmm I know some couples that are in roommate situations for various reasons, you are right there are a lot of sexless marriages.”

A: ” Now you have been married a long time. How long?”

Moi: “26 years plus the 2 years we dated so 28 years.”

A: “So do you guys still want to have sex?…I see you on FB and you 2 look so cute and I wonder…”

Moi: “Well, yes we do- trust me I would not be here letting you do “this” just because-

Riiiiiiiiiiip Riiiiiiiiiiiiiip Riiiiiiiiiiiiip

So after my appointment, I thought about intimacy in marriage and what happens to some couples that one day or night becomes the “last time” and then they never “do it ” again? I get it if there is a health issue, but what really happens? It is one of those subjects that you don’t really chat about.

I recall my mother-n-law who is in her early 90’s telling me and my sister-n-law that if you are not having sex with your husband he is having sex with someone else…Relationships are complicated and they are always changing, you have to be adaptable and accepting of your partner as these changes are taking place. Intimacy is a part of marriage and like anything else you have to work at the connection and keeping things interesting.

Based on my 28 years, not that I’m an expert, but from my experience you have to be open and honest with your partner. Of course as the years go by we change physically and emotionally, the stress of life can sometimes get the best of you, but it is important to carve out time for relationship and make it a priority. It is IMPORTANT to make time for special moments. Never stop dating and doing the things that attracted you in the first place.

BTW speaking of time, I’m happy to be baaaaaack! It has been to long, summer has zoomed by, my son is settling into his first year of college at Bard in upstate New York, my photography is going quite well, I am learning how to do underwater portraits and just having a blast and embracing each day to the fullest. I have a lot of fun things planned so stay tuned.

I know I have been on a hiatus but I’d love to hear from you…

Xoxo,

Gigi

Deletion

Posted on July 13, 2015 by Gigi in My Life, Uncategorized Comments Off

In our virtual world of facebook, instagram, twitter, snapchat etc. we have more “contact” with friends, family and our cyber peeps, many whom we have never met. Lots of time is spent being a voyeur into the lives of strangers, remote acquaintances and friensmies. We spend time peeking into secret worlds, wondering how our life compares, are we as happy as they are? Most of us present our best “self” on line, including moi…the bad hair days tend to not make it on my feed, nor the pics that we all have when caught in mid speech or chewing…not cute. It’s human nature to want to “see” what others are doing, to snoop on an ex-boyfriend or ex-girlfirend’s page, check out their comings and goings.

Between my blog and my business my “friend” list has grown. I don’t know all the mechanics of facebook, for example how which friends show up on my newsfeed, or how I can google something, usually a shoe of some sort and the next thing I know that item shows up on my feed in a sponsored post. I accept most friend requests, especially if I have mutual friends in common. You meet people and quickly add them to your facebook tribe routinely. I have a few facebook friends that I have even met in person. One was a woman named “Gervel” who lives in Maryland, she saw my status update when I was in Maryland this particular day, “Gervel” messaged me and we met and had a lovely time exchanging stories about how we both ended up with the same odd name.

I’ve become close with a few of my facebook friends, sort of a connection like a “penpal” those of you that are old enough might remember those. In this world where we have so many “friends”, what happens when someone DELETES you? How do you feel? Or does it matter, especially if it is someone you don’t know. Or maybe the connection is so remote you may not even know your were deleted. But what if it is someone you know? You may feel hurt, especially if the person is someone in your social circles.

It has happened to me on a few occasions, and I must admit it is an odd feeling, not hurt per se, because someone you really know would probably have a chat with you if there was some conflict. It’s one of those things, where you figure, that a person had an adverse feeling about you that moved them to press “DELETE”. Maybe it was a post, or perhaps you have a religious or political stance that rubbed them the wrong way. Or maybe they just decided “enough of you” delete! Whatever the reason for the omission, life keeps moving forward and it is a reminder to make time for real “face” time with friends and family, don’t let social media replace real visits, there something different about looking into someone eyes seeing their smile and having a conversation.

Happy Monday,

Xoxo,

Gigi

self portrait #3

Not in This Lifetime…

Posted on June 4, 2015 by Gigi in My Life Comments Off

Do you ever read something about someone in the press and for a moment you are in awe of the person’s accomplishments and then you think to yourself “hmmmm not in this lifetime, would I ever be acknowledged for something like that.”? I look back on my life and I think about what have I done that has been newsworthy…?

Being a relatively new photographer I have not receieved any formal accolades in my new career, nor had a gallery showing, or published a coffee table book, or shot a magazine cover, or been a speaker at a international photography conference. I was a full time mommy for many years and did not receive any awards for that, well a bauble here and there for Mother’s Day but that’s it. No special award for having 2 babies 6 years apart. I dabbled in interior design, no recognition there either just a lot of pretty stuff that ended up in my home.

I returned to school in my early 40’s and finished my degree, no write up there, maybe if I had gone back in my 90’s I could have been written up for breaking a record at a college of being the eldest to get my BA at the university. I’m in lots of organizations and have donated a lot of hours, but I have not started a non-profit or been on Oprah for my dedication to a cause.

Gigi finishing college

So I went back a little further to when I had a chocolate brownie business with a friend, we worked hard and were given an award by the Governor for our efforts, I have a vague memory of the day, I remember traveling to Sacramento and being real happy to receive the award.

Gigi’s brownie days-

While the odds of me doing something newsworthy or becoming “famous” in my lifetime are slim, I will still continue to live life like a rockstar- doing and being the best that I can be, I will admire those that are in my life that on occasion I read about, or see on the big screen. Would I have done things differently? I don’t know, I think everything happens for a reason, so I will savor my moments and keep it moving…

Xoxo,

Gigi

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